This feature titled “Unsung Hero” is intended to introduce a member of our profession who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership, innovation, commitment, or made significant contributions to social justice and community affairs.
We are delighted to introduce you to Arthur Wilson, QC and Michael Birnbaum.
The CBA has a mentorship program for law students who are members of our Province’s law school student sections. Mentors are paired with students based on the students’ areas of interests. The mentorship commitment runs for one year, beginning with a “meet your mentor” reception. Mentors assist students in any number of areas which include networking, answering questions related to job searches, and providing insights into what various practice areas look like.
And who are our CBA student mentors? Arthur serves as a CBA mentor for students at the U of A while Michael is a mentor for U of C students.
Many of you will have met Arthur at some point in your career especially if you have any involvement with the CBA. Arthur has served in some capacity or another as section chair, member of various committees, or in some other volunteer capacity with the CBA since 1993. That’s more than 20 years of volunteer involvement!!! He is dedicated to the integrity of our profession, in seeing our young lawyers succeed, and articulating a very clear vision for our profession: that we should be proud of who we are and that the legal profession is, and should be, a noble one.
Arthur started his legal career in 1979, and spent the next 30 years with various firms with a general litigation practice. In 2009, he was appointed as a Justice of the Peace in Edmonton. For those of you who might know Arthur, you would certainly agree with me that Arthur is a true gentleman, someone who respects and understands the litigator’s craft and whose professional life has been dedicated to serving the needs of others in our profession.
Michael is a renaissance man. He speaks French, Hebrew, Spanish and enough Cantonese to order dumplings. Amongst his passions, he plays tenor saxophone with the Woodhouse Big Band, has acted in countless plays, and is a karate black belt. Clearly, not a man to be trifled with.
As many of you know, Michael has dedicated his professional life to using his legal skills in helping others. Since 2006, Michael has served as a Q.B. domestic resolution officer, and, amongst his long list of volunteer accomplishments, has served as a member of the Calgary Regional Committee for the Legal Aid Society of Alberta, volunteered with the Temple B’Nai Tikvah Community Outreach Program at the Calgary Drop-in Centre, volunteered with the children’s Law Day program, served on the Board of Directors for the Jewish Family Service, Calgary Latin American Literacy Project, Calgary Immigrant Aid Society, and lectured to various organizations including the Elizabeth Fry Society and the Community Interpreters Course.
The CBA’s strength and vibrancy reside in its extraordinary members. Arthur and Michael exemplify the commitment that many of our CBA members have made to helping others. They make our profession proud because their commitment to help isn’t driven by the recognition that might bring, but because it is simply who they are, deeply committed to using their skills and status within our society to further a better life for others.
We celebrate their achievements – Arthur and Michael are “unsung heroes” -- and they represent some of the finest qualities of our profession.
Do you know an Unsung Hero? Tell us about them. If you know a lawyer who deserves to be recognized, please send us an email to communications@cba-alberta.org with the lawyer’s name and the reasons why you believe they are an “unsung hero”. The only formal requirements for nomination are that our “unsung hero” be an Alberta Lawyer and a CBA member.
If you are interested in participating in the CBA mentor program either as a Mentor, or a student Mentee, please contact Linda Chapman (Calgary) at 403-263-3707 or Heather Walsh (Edmonton) at 780-428-1230 for more information.
Ola Malik is a Municipal Prosecutor with the City of Calgary, a Canadian Bar Association Partner Organization. He is the chair of the Alberta Branch Access to Justice Committee, and a long-time Law Matters contributor with the “Unsung Hero” column.